2. This Buddhist quote about family and friends

“A family is a place where minds come in contact with one another. If these minds love one another, the home will be as beautiful as a flower garden.”

Buddhist wisdom teaches us to love and respect our community.

“Sangha” is a Buddhist word that refers to a community of monks, a group of individuals working together towards the mutual goal of attaining enlightenment.

In Sanghas, monks come together to offer devotion, to help their community grow, and to show mutual compassion and love.

The whole world could greatly benefit by understanding the Buddhist concept of “Sangha”.

By looking at life as a “Sangha”—as a group of people who can all help one another to achieve lasting happiness and peace—we would immediately undo much of the world’s evil.

Perhaps the most important piece of Buddhist wisdom is that all people deserve love and compassion. That one piece of Buddhist wisdom truly could change the world.

3. This Buddha quote about consciousness

One of the most important Buddhist wisdoms for happiness is to live consciously. Live for the present moment.

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. — Buddha quote ”

Buddhists call this trait “Mindfulness”.

Mindfulness is about focusing the mind on the present moment. It’s a simple but profoundly powerful practice.

When you live your life in the present moment you are aware of the fullness of existence. When you live now you are more receptive to joy, love, peace, and happiness.

Studies show that living in the moment::

Makes us more mindful

Helps with physical pain

Increases endurance when working out

Makes us more aware of sensory information (tastes, smells, sights, sounds and feelings)

Increases creativity

Helps stop bad habits

Boosts happiness and relaxation

4. This Buddhist quote on appreciating beauty in life

“Love is beauty. Beauty is truth. That is why in the beauty of a flower we can see the truth of the universe”—Buddha quote

Life is a miraculous and wonderful thing. But too many people never stop to appreciate the beauty of existence, the preciousness of this thing called life.

Realising the beauty of life means recognising the miracle of your own body and mind, it means valuing community and society, it means revering nature. The world is a most splendorous thing. Let love of life fill your being.

Buddhists believe in oneness. They believe that everything is connected as one. They believe that we are all connected to each other, to nature, and to the world. That is why you can never live your own life fully unless you embrace the whole world: because you yourself are found in that world. To close your eyes to part of the world is to close your eyes to part of yourself.

Science proves that the appreciation of beauty is important for health and happiness. Having an appreciation of beauty makes us feel connected to something higher than ourselves [1]. And this sense of a higher power is beneficial for our mental health [READ: The Importance Of Spirituality].

5. This Buddhist quote about change

” It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousands battler. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you. — Buddha ”

Buddhists know that if we are to change the world we must begin with ourselves.

One of the best Buddhist wisdom is the basic idea of training the mind to be our best.

Because we are all one with each other, and thereby we are all interconnected, if we change ourselves we will invariably change the world. Do not subscribe yourself to the ignorant belief that it’s “them or me”. It is us. It is we. We are one. If I change I will invariably change you. If you change you will invariably change me.

Buddhist wisdom states that we must accept the truth. The truth is death.

Buddhists meditate on the corpse, spending hours imagining their own bodies decomposing and return to the earth [read: Samatha Meditation]. Through this meditation practice they develop acceptance of death. This acceptance diminishes their fear, leading to a profound state of inner peace

When eating, they will focus their minds on the food absolutely, meditating on the tastes, the sights, the smells, and the textures of the food. They understand that food is a blessing, one that must be valued and respected.

Eating mindfully naturally leads to eating slowly, and this in turn helps the digestive system, but mindful eating also helps the mind and spirit.

When we eat slowly we come to recognise the interconnections of life, the fact that the food becomes a part of us and that we are, therefore, deeply connected to the wider world.

Have gratitude and respect for food and you will help not just your body but your mind and spirit too.

8. This beautiful Buddhist quote on kindness

“Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.” –Buddha Quote

In this meditation session he would contemplate how he could help people that day. Having meditated on kindness he would then set out to do it. He would spend the hours between 10am and noon helping his community.

Buddhists understand the value of giving. They know that giving and receiving are both beautiful acts that help to create a deeper connection between people.

Give something today and allow someone to give something to you. You will immediately feel more connected.

9. This Buddhist quote about ego

Buddhists believe in letting go of the ego.

But as Robert Wright says in Why Buddhism Is True [AMAZON], “Don’t feel like you’re committing a felony-level violation of Buddhist dogma just because you think of yourself as being a self.”

The one thing that all spiritual practices have in common is this: they are about letting go of the ego and getting in touch with some form of higher power.

Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism… they all share this trait, they all know that the greatest obstacle to peace and happiness is the ego.

Let go of the ego and you will achieve a higher state of being.

One of the principle reasons why Buddhists meditate is to remove the ego.

When meditating, we create oneness, we come to see that the whole world is interconnected. This is the very antithesis of ego. Ego says “I am”. The enlightened mind says “We are”. That one subtle difference in attitude can change your life forever.

10. The Buddhist value and belief in right speech

These are Eight beliefs that Buddhists consider to be of ultimate importance.

One of these beliefs is right speech.

“Speak well of others, not of their faults”–Buddha quote

Right speech is peaceful speech. It is speaking in a compassionate and peaceful way.

Buddhist wisdom states that we should not judge others. We must not speak in words of judgment. Nor should we speak in words of anger, hostility, or resentment.

Right speech is about speaking from a place of love and compassion.

When you speak in this way you make your words more pleasurable for other people, and you improve your well-being. Using words of kindness, love, and compassion leads to heightened state of joy and happiness. Rid yourself of violent words and adopt a peaceful vocabulary instead.

11. The Buddhist belief in not wanting

Buddhists do not want. You won’t hear a Buddhist talking about how much better their life would be if only they won the lottery.

Buddhists appreciate what they have, they appreciate the present moment, whatever the moment might be.

This is one of the core Buddhist beliefs and values.

Buddhist wisdom states that every moment is precious and that wherever we are, there we must be.

Do not dream of better places, of richness, of an easy life.

Appreciate the life you live.

This life lesson is best expressed by the Bruce Lee quote “Do not pray for an easy life. Pray for the strength to endure a difficult life”.

” All the suffering in the world arises from wanting happiness for the self. All the happiness in the world arises from wanting happiness for others”–Buddha Quote

12. The Buddhist value and belief in right livelihood

“To have right livelihood, practice loving kindness in the way you earn your living”–Buddhist quote

The work you do every day should be work that leads to peace and happiness for yourself and for all other people.

Your work should serve your own life. Seems simple, right? But how many people are stuck in jobs they hate? Do work that makes you happy and peaceful.

Your work should help other people too. You don’t necessarily have to work in healthcare or charitable organisations to achieve that. Teachers can have a profound effect on their students, as can people in public services—simply helping someone with a smile can go a long way towards making their day a better one.

Use your work to boost peace and happiness for all.

13. The Buddhist belief and value of Non-attachment

One of the most important Buddhist values and beliefs is non-attachment.

Non-attachment means living in a “liquid state”. It means we are not attached to ideas of want or anger. It means we live in the present moment.

As water travels freely through the rivers and stream, so too must we travel freely through time, through the succession of present moments, through the river we call life.

Travelling freely means travelling without attachment

. If we are too caught on the way things “should be” we are not free to experience the way things are. Let go of your preconceived notions of life and you will embrace a much deeper connection to the present moment.

14. The Buddhist belief in the present moment

“Do not stay in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate on the present moment”—Buddha quote

There will always be a now, and now is all there will ever be

There is no Buddhist wisdom and no Buddhist life lesson more important than this.

Now is everything.

Right now.

Not tomorrow.

Not yesterday.

Not the dream in your head. N

ot the fear.

Now. Now. Now. Now.

Now.

Embrace this moment. Sit back and tell yourself “This is my life right now”. Have the courage and wisdom to live 100% in the present moment, because this time, this moment, is more precious than gold or jewels. This moment is the single most valuable commodity you will ever have. It is everything. Embrace it. Love it. Live it. The time to be alive it now.

15. The Buddhist belief in Dukka

Buddhists believe life is suffering.

Taken at face value this belief doesn’t seem all that positive now, does it?.

Life causes suffering.

Well, gee, that’s just swell. So you mean I’m going to suffer all my life?

Yup. Inevitably life will lead to pain.

But here’s the point. If you accept the fact that life causes pain, you will immediately gain mental strength.

So much of the suffering in life is caused by:

fear of possible pain,

the idea that we suffer more than others,

the idea that if we’re in pain, we must be doing something wrong.

When you simply accept that life always includes a degree of pain, you remove all three of those issues. You don’t fear pain, because doing so would be pointless—pain is going to happen anyway, so why fear it? You know that all life experiences pain, so you no longer feel alone. Finally, you know that you’re not doing something wrong. No matter what you do, your life will involve some suffering. It’s inevitable. As soon as you realise the inevitability of some degree of pain, you gain strength.

16: The Buddhist belief in Anitya: Life is in flux

Buddhists believe in Anitya, the state of impermanence, the idea that all things are perpetually changing [7]

This address one huge flaw without typical Western thinking: We try to keep things stable.

You want to know that your job is secure, your relationship is solid and will never change, your health is constantly in a good state, and that all is fine.

Just one problem: Life doesn’t work like that.

Life is as the ocean currents, ever rolling, ever moving, ever stirring the waters of change.

You can’t stop life from changing. The more you try to cling on to life, the more pain you’ll suffer.

You get ill. You get healthy. You find a good job. You lose a good job. You get married. Maybe you get divorced. That’s life. Change.

Imagine if there was no change. Imagine if it were all the same, day in, day out, yesterday being tomorrow being today, all one. Imagine. What would be the point?

The thrill of life comes from riding the waves. You can’t stop the current from stirring, you can’t stop the waves from flowing, you just get up on surf on the waves of life. And you love the ride. And if you fall of, from time to time, you love the feeling of being in deep water. Life is change. Embrace it.

Another Buddhist belief is that we should have no attachments. No, not email attachments, mental and spiritual attachments.

17: The Buddhist belief in Anatma: The Self is Ever Changing

One of the most important of all Buddhist beliefs and values is Anatma: the idea that the self is always changing. [8]

Buddhists believe there is no soul.

For instance, take me.

I’m a writer and meditation teacher, 32, healthy, look alright, have a loving family… that’s me. But here’s the deal. That me, that self, is going to change. 32 turns to 33. Maybe I lose my job. Maybe I get a better job. Maybe something happens to my family. I. change.

And besides, you also have to ask, where does the idea of “self” come from? (click that link for a truly elucidating read).

I actually changed a lot recently.

My father died this year. My father’s death changed me forever. The self I clung to before isn’t there now. I’m different. And next year, or next month, or maybe even today, something will happen that will change me.

We are forever changing.

But in the west we tend to try and cling on to one idea of ourselves. The problem is that if you cling on to one idea of yourself, you prevent yourself from experiencing the full reality of your own existence.

Accept your impermanence, embrace your ever changing state. You might have just one life. But in that one life, you’ll exist in a million different colours. And that’s the beauty of you and me: we have the potential to be anything.

Paul Harrison

Paul Harrison is a meditation teacher, author and journalist based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Paul has helped thousands of people to discover their true potential. Don’t miss Paul’s inspirational and enlightening book: Your Best Meditation

Paul M Harrison. Meditation Teacher. Hamilton Ontario

Paul M Harrison is an author and meditation teacher in Hamilton Ontario Canada.

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